Youth Garden Education Programs An Introduction to Our Services and - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Youth Garden Education Programs An Introduction to Our Services and Needs Assessment in Arapahoe County April 17, 2019 Presenters: • Danielle Ardery, Program Coordinator • Lucinda Greene, Master Gardener Coordinator • Lisa Mason, Horticulture Agent • Kathleen DeVries, Master Gardener Volunteer

Contact us! CSU Extension – Arapahoe County (303) 738-7970 www.arapahoe.extension.colostate.edu 6934 S. Lima Street Suite B Centennial, CO 80112 Please fill out our survey: http://bit.ly/schoolgardensurvey

Mission Statement Colorado State University Extension • Extension is dedicated to serving current and future needs of Coloradans by providing educational information and programs that safeguard health, increase livelihood, and enhance well-being.

Colorado Master Gardener Program • Receive in-depth training in horticulture in exchange for volunteer/outreach time • CMG volunteers assist CSU Extension staff in delivering research-based gardening information to the public • Make a positive impact in the community • Volunteer experiences include: – Youth and School gardening – Phones / Diagnostic Clinic / Information Booths – Community / Demonstration Gardens / Horticultural Therapy – Speaking / Teaching / Writing / Mentoring

Mission Statement Master Gardener Program • The Colorado Master Gardener program enhances Coloradans’ quality of life by: – Extending knowledge-based education to foster successful gardeners – Helping individuals make informed decisions to protect neighborhood environments – Using horticultural knowledge to empower gardeners, develop partnerships, and build stronger communities

What programs do we have to offer? Overview of educational Modules

Master Gardeners can come to your classroom! • Master Gardener volunteers can come to your school to deliver hands-on, engaging modules/programs • Lessons will be correlated to state and national teaching standards • Optional extended resources will be available to teachers Targeting Pre-K through 5 th grade • • Exploring topic areas

Educational Modules • Composting • Seeds and Life Cycles • Plant Needs • Pollinators • Insect biodiversity

Life Science • Living things have characteristics and basic needs. • Living things develop in predictable patterns. • Organisms can be described and sorted by their physical characteristics. • An organism is a living thing that has physical characteristics to help it survive. • Organisms depend on their habitat’s nonliving parts to satisfy their needs. • Each plant or animal has different structures or behaviors that serve different functions. • The duration and timing of life cycle events such as reproduction and longevity vary across organisms and species. • All living things share similar characteristics, but they also have differences that can be described and classified. • There is interaction and interdependence between and among living and nonliving components of ecosystems • All organisms have structures and systems with separate functions.

Earth Systems Science • Earth’s materials have properties and characteristics that affect how we use those materials. • Events such as night day, the movement of objects in the sky, weather, and seasons have patterns. • The Sun provides heat and light to the Earth. • Earth’s materials can be compared and classified based on their properties. • Weather and the changing seasons impact the environment and organisms such as humans, plants, and other animals • Earth’s materials can be broken down and/or combined into different materials such as rocks, minerals, rock cycle, formation of soil, and sand – some of which are usable resources for human activity. • Earth and Sun provide a diversity of renewable and nonrenewable resources. • Earth’s surface changes constantly through a variety of processes and forces.

Physical Science • Objects can be sorted by physical properties, which can be observed and measured. • Objects have properties and characteristics. • There are cause and effect relationships in everyday experiences.

21 st Century Skills • Critical Thinking and Reasoning • Information Literacy • Collaboration • Self-Direction • Invention

We need your help! http://bit.ly/schoolgardensurvey

Compost Happens! And you and your class can make it happen!

Did you know? • The typical American throws away about five pounds of trash every day. • Much of it does not need to go to the landfill.

Brown materials (Carbon) Dry leaves Straw Bark and twigs Paper products – newspaper, shredded paper or paper towels Dryer lint Wood chips Sawdust

Green materials (Nitrogen) Kitchen scraps Table/fruit/vegetable scraps Coffee grounds and tea bags Egg shells Grass clippings Weeds with NO SEEDS Aged animal manure

Hands-On Learning Experiences

Seeds and Plant Life Cycles Botany Basics

Plants are Everywhere!

All plants have life cycles

Children can become competent gardeners

Understanding by experiencing

What does a plant need? Light Water Air Nutrients Space

Pollinators Critical to Human and Ecosystem Survival

Pollinators – Why are they important to us? Approximately 1/3 rd of the world’s crops • depend on insect pollinators • Bees pollinate up to $15 billion worth of crops each year • Over 80 crops dependent on pollinators – fruits, vegetables and nuts • Pollinate alfalfa and clover used to feed cattle • More than 75% of plants need pollinators for reproduction

Pollination – What is it?

Pollinators – Who are they? BEES MOTHS BATS Colorado has over 900 species of bees! Most live underground or in cavities.

Pollinators – Classroom applications and learning • Research types of pollinators and adaptations • Identify plants that attract pollinators • Identify parts of a flower and understand their functions • Explore different kinds of seeds that help with pollinators/plant them and watch them grow • Economic and social considerations • Citizen science • Take home actions such as planting pollinator habitat

Insect Biodiversity We are losing what we didn’t know we had.

From 1900 to the present day, the percentage of pages covering insects (topics including diversity, form and function, ecological roles, human – insect interactions, etc.) has declined in introductory biology textbooks. (Gangwani and Landin 2018)

Benefits of Insects: • Vital roles in nearly every ecosystem • Pollinators • Decomposers • Predators • Natural enemies against invasive species and pests • Sources for new genetic and medical breakthroughs • Food for other organisms

Insects and arthropods all over the world are declining due to: Human activity Habitat loss Climate change Spread of invasive species

Classroom applications include: • Looking at biodiversity on school grounds, backyard homes • Citizen science • River health • Dispelling myths • Actions students can take

Thank you for listening! Please fill out our survey: http://bit.ly/schoolgardensurvey Questions?

Contact us! CSU Extension – Arapahoe County (303) 738-7970 www.arapahoe.extension.colostate.edu 6934 S. Lima Street Suite B Centennial, CO 80112 Please fill out our survey: http://bit.ly/schoolgardensurvey